From Rs 700 to Rs 32,000: Know the annual bank locker charges across India

When a customer approaches Branch for locker, as per extant guidelines, KYC formalities are required to be adhered.

Depending on the size of the locker and the centre where the branch is located, a bank will charge you annual rent for your lockers after you have signed an agreement with the bank. The rent has  be paid in full before the start of the fiscal year. 

The RBI has allowed banks to obtain a Term Deposit (fixed deposit) covering three years’ rent and the charges at the time of allotment. This provision has been made to ensure prompt payment of locker rent as there may be cases where the locker-hirer stops operating or paying the rent for the locker.

 

According to the RBI notification dated August 18, 2021, "Banks, however, shall not insist on such Term Deposits from the existing locker holders or those who have satisfactory operative account. The packaging of allotment of locker facility with placement of term deposits beyond what is specifically permitted above will be considered as a restrictive practice.

So for a bank locker where the annual  rent charges are Rs 5000, the bank cannot ask you to make a term deposit of more than Rs 15,000.

"Most banks require you to have an active savings or current account with them before you can apply for a bank locker. You will need to submit an application for a bank locker, which may require providing personal identification documents, proof of address, and other necessary details as per the bank's requirements. Banks charge an annual rental fee for bank lockers, which varies based on the size of the locker and the bank's policies. 

Here is a list of annual locker charges by various banks in India

List of private bank locker charges:

 

 Under the new rules, banks will be asked to pay the customer in case there is a loss of content from the bank locker due to negligence on the lender’s part. This amount will be equal to 100 times the annual rent of the bank locker. “As banks cannot claim that they bear no liability towards their customers for loss of contents of the locker, in instances where the loss of contents of the locker are due to incidents mentioned above or attributable to fraud committed by its employee(s), the banks’ liability shall be for an amount equivalent to one hundred times the prevailing annual rent of the safe deposit locker," says the RBI notification.

The Hirer shall not place in the locker any hazardous articles/chemicals/explosive substances/electronic gadgets which give any kind of electronic signals and such other articles, which would affect safety and security of the Safe Deposit Locker. To read more on locker agreements and your rights, you can read our detailed  article here.